With the Rs 8,000-crore revival plan of the closed plant of Fertilizer Corporation of India (FCI) at Talcher in Orissa delayed inordinately, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has urged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to take expeditious steps for its revival.
Stating that the matter relating to the plant revival has been pending for a long time, Patnaik has stressed that the fertiliser unit on being revived can build synergy with the proposed Petroleum, Chemicals and Petrochemicals Investment Region (PCPIR) coming up in the state.
“I understand that steps have been taken for revival of FCI plant and my government has agreed to provide all necessary support for the revival package as requested by the secretary (fertilizers), Government of India. You would appreciate that this important matter has remained pending for a long time. Keeping in view the importance of this national asset, I would request you to take immediate steps for its revival,” said the letter from the Orissa Chief Minister addressed to the Prime Minister.
The Orissa government accords the highest priority to agriculture, Patnaik said, adding that his government would like to ensure timely and adequate supply of fertilizers to farmers.
Since the state is experiencing frequent urea shortages and the demand supply gap for urea has widened over the years, the revival of the Talcher plant is expected to address this chronic shortage.
Besides, the opening of the Talcher fertiliser plant would provide employment and also contribute to the overall growth and development of the eastern region.
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It may be noted that a consortium of three Central PSU majors- Coal India Limited (CIL), GAIL India Limited and Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers (RCF) was to revive the fertiliser plant. A coal gasification project was also to come up as part of the revival plan. Each of the three companies — CIL, GAIL and RCF — will have an equal stake in the project. The modalities of revival plan have undergone changes ever since the project was envisaged in 2008. CIL had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) for the coal gasification project while GAIL had inked MoU with RCF for setting up the fertilizer plant as a 50:50 joint venture.
A coal block at Talcher Coalfields under the command area of Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL), a subsidiary of CIL, been identified for this surface-based coal gasification project.
This coal block has a capacity of 5.5 million tonnes per annum and once washed, it will yield 3.7 million tonnes.
The gas so generated would be used for making urea and ammonium nitrate, one of the important explosives used by CIL. The fertiliser plant is expected to meet around 30 per cent of CIL's requirement of ammonium nitrate.